Eric Carlson has been a resident of Burleson for nearly two decades, where he proudly lives with his two daughters. His long-standing connection to the community underscores his commitment to responsible leadership, reliable services, sustainability, and sound decision-making that supports local families and businesses.
Eric brings extensive leadership experience from a career in science and healthcare. He currently serves as Chief Scientific Officer for a multi-billion dollar pharmaceutical company, where he leads global research, development, and innovation initiatives. Over the course of his career, he has held senior and executive roles at several large pharmaceutical companies, working to develop therapies and treatments across multiple disease areas. In these roles, he led multidisciplinary global teams, managed complex budgets, and advanced programs from early-stage research through regulatory approval and commercialization. His leadership experience includes strategic planning, operational execution, and organizational accountability. Eric holds a doctorate from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and he completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic and executive education at Harvard Business School. He is an avid outdoorsman and has a “sweet tooth” for cars.
Candidate Forum
Explain how you feel your background and experience will help the cooperative fulfill its mission of providing exceptional service and value to its member-owners.
My background and experience has allowed me to develop the skills to approach challenges with discipline, strategic decision making and a commitment to doing what’s best for the patients and health-care providers (customers) who rely on the final outcome of treating their condition, disease or disorder. I’ve spent years solving complex problems, often with limited information and making decisions that must stand up to scrutiny, regulation, real‑world impact and budgetary guidance.
These experiences taught me how to think long‑term, weigh risks carefully and stay focused on delivering value to the customer. I believe those same skills translate directly to serving United Cooperative Services’ membership. I’m comfortable navigating uncertainty, asking hard questions and keeping the mission of exceptional service at the center of every decision.
Most importantly, I care deeply about contributing to something that benefits my community. I want to bring my problem‑solving mindset, innovative approaches, forward‑focused thinking and sense of responsibility to the board in a way that strengthens the cooperative not just for today, but for years to come.
What avenues do you think United Cooperative Services might explore to make sure that it is seen as being a true asset to the members and communities it serves?
Prioritize the reliability and durability of the infrastructure to meet the current and future demands of the customers. This includes in adverse conditions that would strain the infrastructure to ensure the lowest possible risk of service disruption. Strengthen community education and engagement by listening to members, educating members and transparent discussions with United's membership and its communities to provide connection and visibility. A stronger community with more fluid communication can only improve the relationship, service and outlook. Expand programs to assist with improving the efficiency of homes and businesses, support low-income families and identify other populations that would greatly benefit from assistance leveraging local, state and federal programs.
Highlight at least one of the seven cooperative principles and its importance to the membership of the cooperative.
Concern for Community is one of the most meaningful United principles to me, because it is the foundation of why United exists...to support the people it serves. The importance to its members is the impact the co-op's services have on the daily lives of its members in their homes, businesses and lives by serving with safety, reliability and consistency as priorities. Members should feel and experience United as not just another utility provider, but as a valuable resource to provide for and protect their homes and businesses while improving their quality of life. This can be accomplished through community engagement, education, outreach, support programs and meeting the expectations of its membership.
List a few important business areas you believe the cooperative needs to be focused on in the next few years and explain why?
The energy landscape is rapidly shifting in Texas and the world with the rise of advanced technologies and the explosive growth of data centers. Supporting and adapting to this shift will be critical. United will need to actively explore and implement diversified power options to stay ahead of demand and protect its members from volatility, outages and pricing spikes. A modern, resilient and redundant grid must remain a priority so United can withstand these changes without compromising service to its members. We should continue preparing for the future and not be forced into reactive situations to maintain the relationship with and trust of United members and communities.
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